Russian forces are conducting fewer assault operations in the southeast but intensifying their air attacks once again, General Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, head of the Tavria group of Ukrainian forces, said on Dec. 10.
The Tavria group is fighting on the southeastern front lines, including the southern part of Donetsk Oblast and Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
Tarnavskyi said on Telegram that Ukrainian forces were holding on to Avdiivka despite Russia's endless attempts to encircle the embattled city.
The general's report comes as the weather worsens due to winter and ground maneuvering becomes more complicated, especially through the mud. Now that the Ukrainian counteroffensive has run out of steam without achieving its objectives, a lengthy war of attrition is likely ahead.
In the same report, Tarnavskyi claimed that Ukraine had killed over 300 Russian soldiers in his command's operational areas and destroyed three Russian BMD-4 infantry vehicles and two fuel depots.
The Ukrainian military has not disclosed its own casualty figures throughout the war.
Tarnavskyi added that Ukraine had repelled two Russian assault operations near the liberated village of Staromaiorske on the Velyka Novosilka axis.
Since Ukrainian marines who liberated a number of villages on the axis were transferred to another front last summer, Kyiv has been on the defensive there and trying to prevent Russian forces from recapturing its gains.
